Chapter 3: New Life
Felix met us at the
gate in Florence, along with a bulky blond vampire with a far away
look in his eyes. The flight had been timed perfectly, so it was dark
already as we ran through the streets. Well, they ran; I was carried,
held between the boys like a small child while Jane led. I had only
the small duffel bag for my visit to Tanya with me, and that was
slung over the shoulder of the blond one, who I came to understand
was Christiano, the new guard who saw visions of vampires who had
revealed themselves, along with the humans involved.
When Volterra loomed
out of the gloom, I worked very hard to suppress a shudder as
memories of my last trip here flashed through my mind. They were very
clear, despite the fact that they were human.
My bag was returned to
me once we were inside the city and they were sure I wouldn’t make
a run for it, and I was taken straight to Aro. He was in a big room
with a gold ceiling that I had never seen before, half a dozen
grey-cloaked figures surrounding him
“Oh well done Jane!”
he crowed when he saw me, his milky red eyes flashing with
excitement, “I knew you wouldn’t fail me.”
“Of course not
Master,” she said, smiling sweetly at him.
He turned to me. “I
am sure you will be quite comfortable here Bella. Felix will show you
to your room, and then you and I will have a little talk about your
place here, and what I expect from you, alright?”
I nodded, lowering my
eyes. I heard him sigh heavily.
“Really, you are
going to have to do better than that. When I ask you a question like
that, you will answer ‘yes Master’ or ‘no Master’ as
appropriate. Do you understand?” He sounded like a teacher
addressing a new student.
“Yes Master.” I
whispered, trying not to cringe.
“Good!” he said,
happy again. “Off you go now, I will see you soon.”
Jane, Christiano and
Felix bowed, and I followed suit, before Felix led me from the room.
We climbed up a winding
staircase until we reached the very top of the tower. There, a little
dark wood door with black iron supports across it stood open, giving
a view of my new room. It was small but comfortable, with a dressing
table, a little closet and even a small bed. I looked around it, not
really seeing anything. It was all foreign and hideous compared to my
cosy little cottage and our big white bedroom.
“Just put your bag
down,” Felix said in his deep gruff voice. “You can unpack later.
Master doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”
I just nodded, dumped
my bag on the bed, and followed him out of the room and back down the
stairs.
The big room was empty
apart from Aro when I re-entered it. He smiled at me again, and I
bowed.
“Come here Bella,”
he said in his high, scratchy voice. “It will be easier to talk if
we are close.”
This wasn’t strictly
true - I could hear him just fine from the other end of the room -
but I did as I was told and approached him.
“Much better,” he
crooned. “Now, down to business. First of all, there is the proper
way to address the various people here. That is fairly simple. You
will refer to your fellow guard members by their full first name
unless they tell you otherwise. You will address my brothers and
myself as Master at all times, and you will not speak to Sulpicia and
Athenadora at all without permission. Do you understand?”
“Yes Master.” I
replied, my eyes turned respectfully downwards.
“Good. Now, I assume
you would rather be referred to as Bella?” He made it a question;
as if he wasn’t sure what I would want. I thought for a moment.
What did I want?
“Actually... Master,”
I began, hesitant, “I would much rather separate this life from my
old life. You know, not be reminded of who I was more than necessary.
So...” I bit my lip. “Do you think it would be possible for
everyone to call me Isabella from now on? If that’s ok with you, of
course.” I added hurriedly
“Of course!” Aro
exclaimed, “Whatever you would prefer... Isabella.” He seemed to
be testing it out, trying the name to see how it sounded.
“Is there anything
else I should know?” I asked, eager to get this over with so I
could escape and have some time alone. I needed to cry; or at least,
to do the vampire equivalent of crying, which amounted to an odd
prickling in my eyes and dry sobs.
“Not right now. I
will explain the other aspects of life here as we come to them. Now,
Isabella, you will probably want some more clothing and other
personal belongings. I can send someone out to buy whatever you
need.” He smiled at me. “I want you to be comfortable here.”
“That’s very kind
of you Master, but the only things I need cannot be bought.” Just
saying the words made the prickling start, and I had a hard time
keeping my voice from cracking. Aro’s smile slipped and he looked
very solemn.
“Would you like to go
home Isabella?”
My head snapped up and
I stared at him incredulously. “Home?”
“Just briefly, to
collect some of your own things. You would have an escort, of course;
but you could go into your home, fetch your own clothes. You could
even say your goodbyes if that makes you happy. I’m sure Edward
will be very worried about you. And little Renesmee.”
Their names ripped
through me, leaving a burning agony in my heart. But I couldn’t
turn down the opportunity to go back to the cottage one last time.
“Thank you Master.
You are very kind. Would it be possible for me to leave right away? I
don’t want to waste any time.”
He smiled at me,
satisfied that he was helping me. “Of course Isabella. You will
have to run, it’s too late to book a flight, but Demitri will go
with you and he will help you find your way.” He snapped his
fingers and Alec appeared out of nowhere. “Fetch Demitri. I have a
job for him.”
I bowed once more as
Alec ran off to find Demitri.
